A line of thunderstorms ahead of a well defined shortwave trough traversed the Southern Appalachian mountains during the evening of the 22nd and then moved east across the WFO RAH CWA during the early morning hours of the 23rd. The line produced one concentrated area of wind damage in Randolph County with only isolated wind damage elsewhere.
Every event with a place to put it. Tap one for its entry below.
Deaths and injuries are direct and indirect together, as the offices filed them. Damage is property and crops in the dollars of the year, not adjusted for inflation, and only where an office estimated it.
The episode as NWS RAH wrote it up.
A line of thunderstorms ahead of a well defined shortwave trough traversed the Southern Appalachian mountains during the evening of the 22nd and then moved east across the WFO RAH CWA during the early morning hours of the 23rd. The line produced one concentrated area of wind damage in Randolph County with only isolated wind damage elsewhere.
The local office's own words before the first event, as it sent them, from the Iowa Environmental Mesonet's archive of National Weather Service text.
NWS Raleigh, NC wrote its last area forecast discussion before the first event at Feb 22, 9:30 PM EST, 1 hour 55 minutes earlier.
AREA FORECAST DISCUSSION NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE RALEIGH NC 930 PM EST WED FEB 22 2012 .SYNOPSIS... A WEAKENING COLD FRONT WILL APPROACH FROM THE NORTHWEST OVERNIGHT... STALLING OVER THE PIEDMONT BY DAYBREAK. THE SOUTHWESTERLY FLOW WILL RESUME ON THURSDAY AS ANOTHER COLD FRONT APPROACHES THE REGION THURSDAY NIGHT. THIS FRONT WILL MOVE EAST THROUGH THE AREA EARLY FRIDAY. && .NEAR TERM /THROUGH TONIGHT/... AS OF 930 PM WEDNESDAY... THE LATEST RADAR AND SATELLITE INFORMATION INDICATE THE LINE OF SHOWERS AND THUNDERSTORMS MOVING QUICKLY ESE INTO THE MOUNTAINS OF NC AND SW VA WAS IN A WEAKENING MODE. THE LATEST UPPER AIR AND SURFACE DATA INDICATED THAT THE MODEL FORECASTS WERE TOO MOIST IN THE BOUNDARY LAYER FORECASTS THAT WERE VALID AT 00Z/THIS EVENING. INSTEAD OF MLCAPES IN THE 1000 J/KG RANGE IN AL/GA... THE ACTUAL MLCAPES WERE MORE LESS THAN HALF THAT. STILL... THE RAOBS FROM AL INTO NW GA INDICATED LARGE CYCLIC HODOGRAPHS AND MODELS SUGGEST A CONTINUED INCREASE IN THE WINDS THROUGH 200 AM OR SO... WITH STORM RELATIVE HELICITY VALUES IN THE 250 M2/S2 RANGE FROM BIRMINGHAM TO POSSIBLY CHARLOTTE. THIS DEEP LAYER SHEAR IS FAVORABLE FOR CONTINUED CONVECTIVE DEVELOPMENT ON THE SOUTH END OF THE CONVECTIVE LINE. TO THE NORTH AND EAST... OVER OUR REGION... IT APPEARS THAT THE CONVECTIVE LINE MAY REMAIN IN TACT THROUGH AROUND 200 AM... BEFORE WEAKENING. DUE TO THE CONTINUED NOCTURNAL BOUNDARY LAYER COOLING... IT APPEARS THAT ANY THUNDERSTORMS WOULD BE ELEVATED AS THE LINE MOVES OFF THE BLUE RIDGE INTO THE MORE HOSTILE BOUNDARY LAYER OVER THE TRIAD REGION. WE WILL MAINTAIN OUR CURRENT FORECASTS OF A CHANCE OF SHOWERS FOR A FEW HOURS TIME OVERNIGHT... BUT RAISE POP A BIT TO LIKELY IN THE WINSTON-SALEM TO GREENSBORO AREAS WHERE THE LINE WILL HAVE THE BEST CHANCE OF REACHING. OTHERWISE... INCREASING CLOUDINESS EAST. LOWS SHOULD REMAIN IN THE MID 40S TO MID 50S. && .SHORT TERM /THURSDAY THROUGH THURSDAY NIGHT/... AS OF 240 PM WEDNESDAY... FOR THURSDAY WE SHOULD SEE AN EXIT TO ANY REMAINING RAIN SHOWERS ASSOCIATED WITH THE PASSING SHORTWAVE VERY EARLY...AROUND OR JUST AFTER 9Z IN THE EAST. MOST OF THE COLUMN WILL BEGIN TO DRY OUT THURSDAY MORNING WITH SCATTERED CLOUDS AROUND 5 KFT AND SOME LINGERING HIGH CLOUDS. FAIRLY STRONG SOUTHWESTERLY FLOW WILL CONTINUE BRINGING A GOOD DOSE OF WARM AIR ADVECTION. THIS WILL ALLOW TEMPERATURES TO SOAR NO NEAR OR ABOVE RECORD LEVELS WHICH ARE 73 AT THE PIEDMONT TRIAD AIRPORT AND 79 AT THE RALEIGH-DURHAM AIRPORT. WHILE IT IS UNLIKELY THAT RDU WILL MAKE IT TO 79...THERE IS A GOOD CHANCE THAT THE GSO COULD REACH 73...IN FACT OFFICIALLY FORECASTING 74 DEGREES AT THIS TIME. FURTHER TO THE SOUTH IN FAYETTEVILLE TEMPERATURES SHOULD MAKE IT TOWARDS THE UPPER 70S AND ALTHOUGH THICKNESSES DON'T QUITE SUGGEST IT...GUIDANCE IS CALLING FOR 80 DEGREES AT THE FAYETTEVILLE AIRPORT. NOT THAT AMBITIOUS WITH THE FORECAST AT THIS POINT BUT CERTAINLY UPPER 70S ARE ACHIEVABLE. WITH THOSE SOUTHWESTERLY WINDS WILL COME SOME MORE GUSTS...ESPECIALLY IN THE AFTERNOON SOMEWHERE IN THE NEIGHBORHOOD OF 20 KNOTS. LATE IN THE EVENING ON THURSDAY THE LOW LEVELS WILL BEGIN TO MOISTEN UP AS A COLD FRONT APPROACHES THE AREA FROM THE WEST. THERE WILL BE A CHANCE FOR SOME SHOWERS TO MOVE INTO THE TRIAD BETWEEN 6-12Z BUT IT APPEARS THAT MOST OF THE ACTIVITY ASSOCIATED WITH THIS FRONT WILL OCCUR LATER ON FRIDAY. LOWS THURSDAY NIGHT WILL BE IN THE MID 50S. && .LONG TERM /FRIDAY THROUGH WEDNESDAY/... AS OF 245 PM WEDNESDAY... FRIDAY THROUGH SATURDAY...THE GFS IS CERTAINLY FASTER AND LESS UNSTABLE THAN THE NAM DURING THE DAY FRIDAY...WITH WEAKER LIFT UNDER MODEST DIFFLUENCE ALOFT IN THE FAST SOUTHWEST FLOW. BOTH THE NAM AND THE GFS FORECAST THE GREATEST SURFACE-BASED AND MIXED-LAYER CAPE JUST TO THE EAST OF CENTRAL NORTH CAROLINA...IN VICINITY OF THE 850MB THETA-E RIDGE. DURING EARLY FRIDAY...A PREFRONTAL SURFACE TROUGH MAY PUSH ITS WAY THROUGH MUCH OF CENTRAL NORTH CAROLINA HELPING TO VEER WINDS SOMEWHAT BEFORE THE MAIN COLD FRONT MOVES THROUGH DURING THE AFTERNOON. UNDER THIS SCENARIO...THE BEST POTENTIAL FOR ISOLATED SEVERE THUNDERSTORMS WOULD BE EAST OF INTERSTATE 95 AND MORE LIKELY EAST OF CENTRAL NORTH CAROLINA. IN DEFERENCE TO THE SLOWER NAM...WILL MAINTAIN CHANCES OF RAIN ESSENTIALLY AS PREVIOUSLY FORECAST...CHANCES IN THE TRIAD TO LIKELY IN THE FAR SOUTHEAST TOWARD KFAY...KGSB...AND KCTZ. WILL ALSO MAINTAIN THE STATEMENT IN THE CURRENT HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK FOR FRIDAY AFTERNOON SOUTHEAST AS THE SLOWER NAM SHOWS SURFACE-BASED CAPE BRIEFLY FRIDAY AFTERNOON TO NEARLY 400J/KG. HOWEVER...ANOTHER POSSIBLE LIMITING FACTOR WILL BE THE TREND TOWARD LOWERING 850MB WINDS PUSHING THROUGH CENTRAL NORTH CAROLINA AS FORECAST BY BOTH THE NAM AND THE GFS EARLY FRIDAY AFTERNOON...AHEAD OF THE MAIN COLD FRONT AND RENEWED GUSTINESS. DURING THE AFTERNOON...STRONGER 850MB WINDS IN THE SOUTHWEST FLOW ARE CURRENTLY ALL TOWARD THE COAST. SIMILAR TO AN EVENT A WEEK OR TWO AGO...WHEN GUSTY WINDS ACCOMPANIED FALLING AFTERNOON TEMPERATURES...EXPECT A SOMEWHAT SIMILAR SCENARIO FRIDAY AFTERNOON. IF THE GFS VERIFIES...GUSTS TO AROUND 40 MPH SHOULD BE COMMON BEHIND THE FRONT IN GOOD MIXING. TEMPERATURES SHOULD FALL DURING THE AFTERNOON PARTICULARLY OVER THE NORTHWEST PIEDMONT...AND DURING THE MID-AFTERNOON ON CLOSER TO U.S. 1 ESPECIALLY IF THE GFS COMES CLOSER TO VERIFYING. USED A BLEND OF MAV AND MET MOS FOR HIGHS FRIDAY...AT OR SLIGHTLY BELOW THE COOLEST GUIDANCE FRIDAY NIGHT DUE TO THE STRENGTH OF THE FRONT. ON SATURDAY...BUFR SOUNDINGS SHOW A SHALLOW VOLUME OF MOISTURE BETWEEN -10C AND -15C WITH STEEP LOW-LEVEL LAPSE RATES...WITH THE MOISTURE DEEPER TOWARD KRDU AND KRWI WHERE WEAK 850MB LIFT IS SLIGHTLY GREATER RELATIVE TO THE REST OF CENTRAL NORTH CAROLINA. AS THE UPPER TROUGH PASSES...THERE COULD BE ENOUGH LIFT AND MOISTURE IN THE COLD UPPER TROUGH TO GENERATE AN ISOLATED AFTERNOON SHOWER...ESPECIALLY EAST OF THE TRIAD AND NORTH OF THE SANDHILLS. EARLY IN THE PERIOD SATURDAY NIGHT THROUGH WEDNESDAY...THE CONSENSUS OF THE 00Z AND 12Z LONG-TERM GUIDANCE IS TO SUPPRESS THE BAJA CALIFORNIA UPPER LOW JUST SOUTH OF THE STATE...AS IT MOVES EAST AND WEAKENS IN THE SOUTHERN PART OF THE WESTERLIES ALOFT. WITH THE FORECAST OF STRONG SURFACE HIGH PRESSURE IN THE WAKE OF THE COLD FRONT...THIS SEEMS REASONABLE...ALTHOUGH THE FARTHER SOUTH TOWARD THE SOUTH CAROLINA BORDER THERE MAY BE A MORE NOTICEABLE PRESENCE OF CLOUDS GIVEN INCREASING MOISTURE ALOFT...AND LOWER IN THE ATMOSPHERE NEAR 500MB SOUTH TOWARD KFAY ON GFS BUFR SOUNDINGS. IF THE GFS DOES COME CLOSER TO VERIFYING...HIGHS COULD BE BELOW CURRENT MEX MOS ON SUNDAY...AND THICKNESSES AND GUIDANCE BIAS WOULD ALSO SUGGEST LEANING COOLER FOR SUNDAY. FOR THE EARLY PART OF THE NEXT WORK WEEK...TIMING OF THE SURFACE HIGH MOVING OFF TO THE EAST...AND DEEP MOISTURE RETURN INTO CENTRAL NORTH CAROLINA...VARIES AND HAS CHANGED SIGNIFICANTLY BETWEEN GUIDANCE ON THE 00Z AND 12Z MODEL RUNS. THE ECMWF IS THE FASTEST WITH PRESSURE FALLS OVER CENTRAL NORTH CAROLINA...WHILE THE GFS AND CERTAINLY THE CANADIAN MAINTAIN SURFACE RIDGING OVER THE AREA LONGER...GENERALLY SLOWING THE ONSET OF CHANCES FOR SHOWERS. WILL OPT TO KEEP MONDAY DRY FOR NOW DESPITE THE FORECAST OF THE ECMWF SHOWING A WEAK INVERTED TROUGH NEAR THE CAROLINA COAST MONDAY AFTERNOON. IN WARM-AIR ADVECTION...A MORE LIKELY SCENARIO MAY BE AREAS OF LOW CLOUDS EARLY MONDAY AND A POSSIBILITY OF SPRINKLES LATER IN THE DEVELOPING BROAD SOUTHWEST FLOW ALOFT WITH SOME ATTENDANT SHORTWAVE AS LOW-LEVEL MOISTENING TAKES PLACE. THE COMPLETELY DRY SCENARIO OF THE CANADIAN...AND THE GUIDANCE SHOWING STRONG HIGH PRESSURE IN PLACE EARLY IN THIS LONG-TERM PERIOD...ADDS SOME CONFIDENCE TO SLOWING THE ONSET OF PRECIPITATION. CONSENSUS OF THE LONG-TERM GUIDANCE SUGGESTS THE BEST CHANCES FOR SHOWERS COMES TUESDAY AFTERNOON INTO WEDNESDAY EVENING WHERE COARSE MODEL SOUNDINGS BECOME SATURATED ON BOTH THE GFS AND THE ECMWF. FROM THE 00Z MODEL RUNS TO THE RECENT 12Z RUNS...THE GFS AND THE ECMWF HAVE TRENDED MORE TOWARD STRONGER SURFACE LOWS DEVELOPING TO THE WEST OF THE STATE...LOWERING CONFIDENCE IN TIMING OF PRECIPITATION CHANCES TOWARD THE END OF THE LONG-TERM PERIOD. HAVE OPTED TO FORECAST CHANCES FOR SHOWERS OVERNIGHT TUESDAY THROUGH WEDNESDAY EVENING...MAINTAINING SLIGHT CHANCES ON EITHER SIDE DUE TO MODEL UNCERTAINTY IN TIMING AND EVOLUTION OF SYNOPTIC FEATURES. && .AVIATION /00Z THURSDAY THROUGH MONDAY/... AS OF 705 PM WEDNESDAY... 24-HR TAF PERIOD: CURRENTLY SEEING VFR CONDITIONS ACROSS CENTRAL NC WITH ANY CIGS ASSOCIATED WITH HIGH CLOUDS. FARTHER TO THE WEST...WATCHING THE SHORT WAVE TROUGH AND ASSOCIATED SHOWER AND THUNDERSTORM ACTIVITY... WHICH IS GRADUALLY MOVING EAST ACROSS ERN TN. DESPITE MARGINAL THERMODYNAMIC PROFILES AND 15-20 DEG SFC DEWPT DEPRESSIONS OVER CENTRAL NC...MOST MESOSCALE MODELS SUGGESTS THE BAND OF CONVECTION TO OUR WEST WILL HOLD TOGETHER LONG ENOUGH TO MOVE ACROSS MOST OF CENTRAL NC OVERNIGHT...ALTHOUGH DIMINISHED CONSIDERABLY. EVEN IF PRECIP DOES NOT AMOUNT TO MUCH...EXPECT CIGS TO DECREASE OVERNIGHT TO MVFR AND LOCALIZED IFR CRITERIA ASSOC EITHER WITH THE SHOWER ACTIVITY OR WHATS LEFT OF IT. TIMING OF THE LINE SUGGESTS KINT/KGSO WILL BE AFFECTED BETWEEN 04-09Z...THEN KRDU/KFAY/KRWI BETWEEN 05-11Z. OTHERWISE...CAN'T RULE OUT LOCALIZED GUSTY WINDS WITH ANY OF THE SHOWER ACTIVITY...SO HAVE INCLUDED ELEVATED WINDS DURING THE OVERNIGHT PERIOD. EXPECT CIGS TO LIFT AND SCATTER AFTER 23/15Z WITH FLIGHT CONDITIONS RETURNING TO VFR FOR THE REST OF THE DAY. OTHERWISE...FORECAST SOUNDINGS SHOW BOUNDARY LAYER WINDS AND STABILITY PROFILES SUPPORTING SFC WINDS GUSTING BETWEEN 15-20 KT DURING THE AFTERNOON. LOOKING AHEAD: THE NEXT CHANCE FOR ADVERSE CONDITIONS WILL BE ON FRIDAY WITH THE PASSAGE OF A FRONTAL SYSTEM. && .RAH WATCHES/WARNINGS/ADVISORIES... NONE. && SYNOPSIS...BADGETT/ELLIS NEAR TERM...BADGETT/ELLIS SHORT TERM...ELLIS LONG TERM...DJF AVIATION...NP
HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE RALEIGH NC 959 PM EST WED FEB 22 2012 NCZ007>011-021>028-038>041-073>076-083-084-232045- PERSON-GRANVILLE-VANCE-WARREN-HALIFAX-FORSYTH-GUILFORD-ALAMANCE- ORANGE-DURHAM-FRANKLIN-NASH-EDGECOMBE-DAVIDSON-RANDOLPH-CHATHAM-WAKE- STANLY-MONTGOMERY-MOORE-LEE-ANSON-RICHMOND- 959 PM EST WED FEB 22 2012 THIS HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK IS FOR CENTRAL NORTH CAROLINA. .DAY ONE...THIS AFTERNOON AND TONIGHT. A BAND OF SHOWERS AND ISOLATED THUNDERSTORMS WILL GRADUALLY WEAKEN AS IT MOVES OFF THE BLUE RIDGE AND INTO THE NORTHERN AND WESTERN PIEDMONT OF NORTH CAROLINA THROUGH MIDNIGHT. BRIEF HEAVY RAIN AND GUSTY WIND TO 40 MPH MAY ACCOMPANY THE LINE INTO THE WINSTON-SALEM AND GREENSBORO AREAS BEFORE WEAKENING. .DAYS TWO THROUGH SEVEN...THURSDAY THROUGH TUESDAY. AS A COLD FRONT WILL SWEEP THROUGH THE REGION ON FRIDAY. STRONG AND GUSTY SOUTHWEST WINDS WILL BECOME WESTERLY TO 40 MPH FRIDAY. NCZ042-043-077-078-085-086-088-089-232045- JOHNSTON-WILSON-HARNETT-WAYNE-SCOTLAND-HOKE-CUMBERLAND-SAMPSON- 959 PM EST WED FEB 22 2012 THIS HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK IS FOR CENTRAL NORTH CAROLINA. .DAY ONE...THIS AFTERNOON AND TONIGHT. HAZARDOUS WEATHER IS NOT EXPECTED AT THIS TIME. .DAYS TWO THROUGH SEVEN...THURSDAY THROUGH TUESDAY. AS A COLD FRONT APPROACHES AND CROSSES THE REGION ON FRIDAY... THERE IS A SLIGHT CHANCE OF THUNDERSTORMS. IF THUNDERSTORMS DO OCCUR...THEY WILL HAVE THE POTENTIAL TO BECOME SEVERE...WITH A PRIMARY THREAT OF DAMAGING STRAIGHT LINE WINDS. DJF/BADGETT
SPECIAL WEATHER STATEMENT NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE RALEIGH NC 1113 PM EST WED FEB 22 2012 NCZ021-022-038-039-230500- DAVIDSON-FORSYTH-GUILFORD-RANDOLPH- 1113 PM EST WED FEB 22 2012 ...A LINE OF SHOWERS AND ISOLATED THUNDERSTORMS WILL MOVE EAST ACROSS FORSYTH... DAVIDSON... AND GUILFORD COUNTIES THROUGH 1200 AM... AT 1110 PM EST...DOPPLER RADAR INDICATED A LINE OF SHOWERS AND ISOLATED THUNDERSTORMS EXTENDING FROM CLEMMONS TO KERNERSVILLE MOVING EAST AT 40 MPH. GUSTY WIND TO 40 MPH AND BRIEF HEAVY RAIN WILL ACCOMPANY THE LINE. AREAS AFFECTED INCLUDE... WINSTON-SALEM... PTI AIRPORT... GREENSBORO... MIDWAY... LEXINGTON... THOMASVILLE... HIGH POINT... HAZARDS INCLUDE... GUSTY WINDS OF 30 TO 40 MPH. ISOLATED THUNDERSTORMS. BRIEF HEAVY RAIN. THIS INCLUDES INTERSTATE 40 IN WINSTON-SALEM... BETWEEN EXITS 37 AND 219. THIS INCLUDES INTERSTATE 85 IN DAVIDSON INTO GUILFORD COUNTIES... EXITS 118 AND 131. SEEK SHELTER IN A NEARBY BUILDING OR VEHICLE. && LAT...LON 3621 8039 3611 7954 3586 7954 3604 8043 TIME...MOT...LOC 0407Z 281DEG 42KT 3611 8029 BADGETT
The Roanoke radar (KFCX), 92 km away, was scanning. The volume nearest the first event began at 04:25 UTC.
4 thunderstorm wind. Local standard time, as filed.
One tree was blown down near the intersection of NC Highway 220 and NC Highway 158. Another tree was blown down onto a house on Fernwood Drive.
One tree was blown down at Alamance Church Road and Foust Road.
Several trees were blown down along the swath, including down trees along Dixon Street, Virgil Hill Road, Pleasant Ridge Church Road, Lee Layne Road and Highway 49.
Numerous large tree limbs were blown down.
After NWS Directive 10-1605, the rules offices file Storm Data by.
Every storm in North Carolina in 2012Every state in 2012This day in weather historyWarnings in North Carolina, February 2012
NOAA National Centers for Environmental Information, Storm Events Database, compiled from the National Weather Service’s monthly Storm Data. Complete through 2026-06; NCEI adds each month about 75 days after it ends and revises past years a few times a year. Rebuilt 2026-09-24. Each event’s entry at NCEI: 360269, 360270, 360271, 360272.